


for you i'd bleed myself dry

by keplcrs



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Also known as, Angst, Confession, M/M, i love to suffer, im sorry, no happy ending, sort of, there are tears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-01
Updated: 2016-09-01
Packaged: 2018-08-12 09:03:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7928827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keplcrs/pseuds/keplcrs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Don’t. Don’t interrupt me-- just. Thank you- you and everyone else, sorry to… to die, really… you have to win now, though… please, win, for me...”</p>
            </blockquote>





	for you i'd bleed myself dry

**Author's Note:**

> i'm sorry, apparently i can't write happy endings. 
> 
> title is from yellow by coldplay

Too fast. It all happens too fast.

He remembers the rock wall, back pressed against it with Shiro’s voice ringing through his ears as he caught his breath. He remembers Lance, a mere five feet away from him, crouched behind a stack of boulders, eyes wide with panic as he motioned to the oncoming troop of Galra soldiers. He remembers pain shooting up his leg- the stupid valley and all of it’s damned rocks. He remembers trying to stand, finds that he can’t. He’ll need a healing pod, then- that is, if he can make it back to the castle. Judging by the circumstances, it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.

“Run.” Heavy footfalls draw steadily closer, echoing off of the valley walls. Lance casts him a confused look, and Keith swallows, pointing ahead, where he knows there lions are waiting. “Run.” He repeats, and his heart sinks when the other male shakes his head.

“I’m not leaving without you.”

“I can barely walk, Lance. Get out of here, I’ll cover for you.” He isn’t sure how much cover he’ll be able to provide, in this state, but he’s determined to make sure that at least one of them makes it off of this planet.

“I’m not leaving you, Keith. Can you stand?” _Stupid,_ he thinks. He shakes his head as Shiro’s voice crackles to life over the coms.

“Lance, Keith, where are you? There are Galra troops here, we need you to return to the castle.”

“We know.” Keith grits out, sparing a glance around the corner of the rock face that he’s claimed as momentary shelter. “They found us.”

“Keith needs a healing pod.” Lance cuts in, ignoring the glare that the shorter male sends him. “We need backup down here, there’s no way I can get him back to the lions with these jerks behind us.” There’s a burst of static, and Keith huffs out a breath, shaking his head as the line goes dead.

“I told you to _run_ , idiot! Go, before they get here!”

“And leave you behind?” He knows the question is rhetorical, but he nods anyways. Lance shoots him a stubborn scowl, shaking his head. “I’m carrying you back to your damn lion if I have to.”

“Lance, no-” Too late. Too late, of course he’s too late. Lance is already darting into the open, making a beeline for Keith. There’s the distinct sound of a blaster firing, and Keith is on his feet and throwing himself into open area, shoving the other paladin backwards before he can even process what he’s doing. Pain flares across his back and side, and he briefly registers a dull screaming noise in the back of his mind. Was that him making that horrendous screech?

“Keith!” No, it wasn’t him- why would he scream his own name? Lance, then. It had to be Lance. Shit, he just got himself shot, hadn’t he? He hears more firing, presumably from the blue paladin’s bayard, before Lance’s face swims into view in front of him. There’s rock behind him- the god damn rocks again- so he assumes that he’s been moved to a more sheltered area. That, or the Galra troop that had been pursuing them were all dead and gone. It was likely, considering that both of their helmets and bayards were somewhere out of his line of sight.

“M’legs don’t hurt so much anymore…” He murmurs, wincing. “And I saved your life. You owe me.”

“Fuck, Keith- you- we need-”

“No med pod.” He sounds bitter. He _is_ bitter. He’s got plenty to be bitter about. He just threw himself in front of a whole squadron of armed Galra soldiers to keep this idiotic moron alive, and what’s he doing? Wasting his time trying to save Keith when he should be running, back to his lion, back to the castle to help the other paladins.

“Shut up. Shut _up_ , you stupid- fuckin’ reckless--” It takes a minute for him to realize that he’s been speaking aloud. Oh. The other boy’s face swims in and out of focus, and he blinks slowly, trying to stop the dizzying sensation that it brings.

“Run, stupid…” He definitely wasn’t going to make it. That much, he could tell. “Go- go kick Zarkon’s ass-- save the universe…” Is he crying? Yeah, probably. Lance is too, from what he can tell- although, that might just be an illusion, drawn from his blurring vision.

“We need-- right now, yes- more Garla--” Lance’s voice is oddly soothing, and Keith does his best to focus on his words until he sees that the helmet is back on the blue paladin’s head. He’s talking to the rest of them, then.

“Lance.”

“Shut up, Keith-” No, he’s not going to shut up. Who tells a dying person to shut up? He can feel himself slipping, and he’s going to say what he has to say before he no longer can.

“ _Lance._ Stop, I’m not- we both know I won’t-- god, just put me down and leave.”

“No. No-- Coran’s got a pod ready, we- we’ll get you back in time, they’re sending Pidge--” He’s trying, at least. Keith can appreciate that.

“I’m sorry.” He murmurs. Lance frowns, opening his mouth to protest, but Keith continues before he can. “Sorry, it was reckless- didn’t think… you-- you would’ve been hit..” He swallows hard, meeting Lance’s eyes. “We’re-- we’re bonding, heh- don’t forget, this time, stupid…”

“Keith, stop- stop talking like it’s goodbye-”

“It is, though-- isn’t it? Where- where’s Pidge? Lance, I’m not- tell the other, yeah? M’sorry. It was- it was nice, having a family-- loved it, all of it, wouldn’t trade it for anything. Loved you, too, did you know that?” He’s rambling now, the words spilling out because what else can he do? He’s dying and there’s so much that he still wants to say, so damn him if he isn’t going to try and cram it all into the few moments he’s got left.

“You-”

“Don’t. Don’t interrupt me-- just. Thank you- you and everyone else, sorry to… to die, really… you have to win now, though… please, win, for me...”

“Keith? Wait, Keith, just- few more minutes, don’t-- stop, stay awake, come on..”

He can’t. He can’t stay awake. He tried to- for Lance, he tried. He just can’t, though.

“I’m sorry, Lance.”

**Author's Note:**

> so yes, i love to Suffer
> 
> i'm burnt-quesadilla on tumblr if you want to yell at me.


End file.
